<h1 class="ql-align-center">Chagos Island&nbsp;</h1><h2> </h2><h2>﻿Context:</h2><ul><li>Recently, Mauritius welcomed the&nbsp;Universal Postal Union’s decision&nbsp;to ban British stamps from being used on the&nbsp;Chagos archipelago.</li></ul> <h2>Background:</h2><ul><li>In the&nbsp;19th&nbsp;century, Chagos were governed from Mauritius,&nbsp;which was&nbsp;a British Colony.</li><li>Mauritius became independent in 1968,&nbsp;but the Chagos archipelago remained under British control.</li><li>The UK retained possession of the Chagos archipelago, which&nbsp;includes the strategic US airbase of Diego Garcia,&nbsp;after Mauritius gained its independence by paying Mauritius more than 4 million pounds for the islands.</li><li>Since 1975, Mauritius&nbsp;has made a concerted legal&nbsp;effort to secure the archipelago's return to its fold.</li></ul> <h2>Recent Decisions in favour of Mauritius:</h2><ul><li>In 2019, the&nbsp;International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that<a href="https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/uk-asked-to-return-chagos-islands-to-mauritius" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(255, 83, 83);">&nbsp;</a>Britain should give up control of the islands.</li><li>Later in 2019, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution recognising that&nbsp;"the Chagos Archipelago forms an integral part of the territory of Mauritius"&nbsp;and urged UN agencies&nbsp;"to support the decolonisation of Mauritius"</li></ul> <h2>Universal Postal Union:</h2><ul><li>It is the second oldest international organization worldwide.</li><li>It was established in 1874 and headquartered in the Swiss capital Bern</li><li>It has 192 member countries.</li><li>It is the primary forum for cooperation between postal sector players. It helps to ensure a truly universal network of up-to-date products and services.</li><li>It is established by the Treaty of Bern of 1874, is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system</li></ul>